30 April 2022 Today's workout was a reminder that how you feel in the water doesn't always dictate how you perform. While I did manage to get in two solid workouts while in New York earlier this week, my sleep suffered and the business meetings I had were high stress affairs that took more of a toll on me than I had expected. Thursday was a planned day off training, but a late night return from La Guardia that night meant my Friday morning swim was more of a "float-out" tha

27 April 2022 You would need a weather man to know which way the wind blows while mixing up a workout in the Athletic & Swim Club basement (pool #516), two stories (at least) below street level in midtown Manhattan ... ... but all you need to gain entry is thirty bucks and a call ahead (no more than two weeks) to reserve a lane or, more accurately, half a lane since they book two swimmers per lane. Technically, they reserve in 30 minute slots, but they are willing to book tw

26 April 2022 I followed up last Saturday's wonderful swim under the skylights in Toronto with a quick hit aerobic workout in midtown New York City on Tuesday afternoon under a different set of skylights at the Manhattan Plaza Health Club: This wasn't a new pool for me, as I had swum here in the summer of 2019 (making this Pool #426) when the skylights were open: What I liked about the pool a couple of years ago, I still liked about the facility today: They have a transparent

25 April 2022 Embarking on my last "full intensity" week of training this rainy Monday morning with my last full rendition of my 400 IM test set. I could feel last week's increase in volume, as well as the extra walking I did around downtown Toronto on Saturday and then thru the forests near my house yesterday as part of a neighborhood "Earth Day/Week" trail cleanup: I started off slowly on my standard, long 1,750 yard warmup: 100s free - 1:12, 1:10, 1:06+, 1:04+ 100s IM kic

23 April 2022 My family tends towards "experience gifts" versus "thing gifts" for birthdays and special occasions, so I was thrilled when my daughter Monica gave me the gift of a swimming outing (plus board games and snacks afterwards at Snakes & Lattes) for my recent 55th birthday. She had done this for me back in 2016, when she took me to the (then recently opened) Regent Park Aquatic Centre (which has since be renamed): From a very new pool, we went to a very old pool ins

22 April 2022 I figured I'd build on yesterday's ambitious goal setting by raising the bar on both intensity and duration for my Friday morning workout, aiming for 5,000 yards with two main sets after my standard long warmup: 3 x 300 Test Set Broken 200 IM set My warmup speeds were adequate, showing a little rust getting going on my 4th swim of the week: 100s free - 1:11, 1:10, 1:07, 1:03 100s IM kick on back - 1:30, 1:29+, 1:27, 1:25 50s build IM order - 31+, 33, 39, 30+ Mai

21 April 2022 Four weeks to race time, my entries are approved ... and my ambitions are high: Minimum Goal - Achieve my best "Age 50+" time Stretch Goals - Break the Canadian National Records in at least two more events: Re-break the 400 IM record and get under 5:00 Break at least one of the 200, 400 & 800 free, or the 200 fly BHAG - Get as close as I can to 49 year old me in my 400 IM - how close can I come to the 4:52.09 I went in as recently as fall of 2016? Close enough

20 April 2022 While many LA Fitness locations can be hit or miss when it comes to their pools, I should give my local Barrie location props: They seem to have struck a good balance between "real training temperature" (e.g., 78-80F) and "fitness club temperature" (usually 84-86F) and keep the water these days right around 82 or so. A bit on the warm side for me, but not so warm that I can't crank out an intense workout. Also related to temperature, they have their showers set

19 April 2022 Doing various versions of a flow yoga class - hot, warm or cold; fast or slow - has been a part of my training routine for over a decade. One of the things I really missed during the pandemic was the ability to go to in-person yoga classes. I tried doing the online versions, but I think part of what I really enjoyed about going out for yoga was the ambiance of the facility, the mood, the detachment that being somewhere else provided me mentally. I just started

18 April 2022 My training plan includes starting each Monday, after a rest & recovery Sunday, by repeating my 400 IM Test Set. After three weeks of that, I'll then begin a gradual three week taper where I'll drop one "400 IM" each week, starting from the end of the set and working backwards from there, as a way to reduce my total volume and intensity. This morning's effort felt stronger and was done after my standard, long 1,750 yard warmup, where I had some decent warmup ti